Marak caught a twinkle in Lord Burdine’s eyes as the Litari Lord sat erect and addressed Lord Marak. “If I agree to have the Litari swear Vows of Service to you, Lord Marak,” posed Lord Burdine, “what happens to the Litari when you die?”
“I actually thought that question would have come from Lord Quavry,” chuckled Marak. “I have made provisions for everyone who has sworn to me to become free and unassociated people. That means that the Litari will continue as a Clan without a Clan Leader. I think that situation would not be as good as what I am proposing, but it would still be preferable to the way Khadora is run now. The short of it is, you will gain nothing by having me murdered.”
“What about the Ragatha Clan?” asked Lord Burdine. “They have repeatedly attacked Glendale seeking a direct route to their other estate. I could have forced them to submit if it was not for your agreement to allow them passage. They seek to control this entire region.”
“I hope they try,” smiled Lord Marak. “They will find an army three times larger than they expect. As for the agreement with Fardale, they don’t have one. Lord Lashendo and Bursar Tachora were bribed to allow for the agreement. Fardale never received any compensation for the use of Fardale land. We shall talk after the emissary leaves and discuss this matter. There are many good points to this union, Lord Burdine. If you put your emotions aside for a moment and look at it, I know you will agree.”
“We made a poorly conceived attempt to crush Fardale,” interjected Lord Quavry while feeling his throat. “I know how you are feeling right now. I am sure that I felt worse. The point is, we made the error and Lord Marak’s offer is more than generous. We often talked of an alliance, but neither of us could fully trust the other. If Lord Marak is to be believed, and I think he is, we will end up better than before. Our three clans together present a force that can resist even the Ragatha.”
“Or the Situ,” added Lord Marak. “Are you so proud that you would cause the Litari to suffer because of your pride?”
Lord Burdine looked back and forth between the other two Lords. “No,” conceded Lord Burdine. “The last thing I want is for my people to suffer. If you, Lord Marak, will pledge to me that your thoughts will always be for the people of the Litari Clan and not your own personal goals, I will agree. If you can not do that, you shall have to kill me.”
“Lord Burdine,” smiled Marak, “that is exactly what I am about. I have no personal goals. I am using the opportunities that have been presented to me to make life better for all Khadorans, including the Litari.”
“What are the reforms you will demand?” asked Lord Burdine.
“I will free your slaves and ask that you provide them decent housing and living conditions,” detailed Lord Marak. “I will require your mages and soldiers to undergo specific training, and I want you to willingly accept input from your people, even the lowest of them. I also insist that no one trespasses on Chula land.”
“Those are your reforms?” Lord Burdine asked incredulously. “Freeing the slaves may hurt a bit, but training my people is something they will readily accept. As for the Chula, we learned that lesson ourselves the hard way. If that is what you are asking of me, Lord Marak, you have a willing servant.”
“Great!” exclaimed Lord Marak. “I want to accomplish the Vows of Service before morning. When the emissary arrives we can jointly tell them we have solved our differences.”
“I will give my Vows now,” declared Lord Burdine. “After you have accepted the Vows from my escort, they will take you to Glendale to complete the process.”
Chapter 15
Emissary
Lord Marshal Grefon hurried into Lord Ridak’s study where the Lord of Lituk Valley was plowing through a pile of reports.
“Lord Ridak,” interrupted Lord Marshal Grefon, “I think we have a problem.”
Lord Ridak was annoyed at the interruption. He hated going through the reports, but the less interruptions he had, the sooner he would be done with the task. “What is it Grefon?” snarled the Lord of the Situ Clan. “Has another of your runners been killed by bandits?”
“Not exactly,” stiffened the Lord Marshal. “I thought you might be interested in a report from one of our couriers. He ran into a Corte of Imperial troops escorting an emissary from the Lords Council.”
The statement piqued Lord Ridak’s interest. It was not often that anyone from the Lords Council came this far from the capital. “Where was he heading?” Lord Ridak inquired.
“He was bound for Watula Valley,” offered Lord Marshal Grefon. “There is trouble with a border dispute involving the Sorgan and Litari Clans.”
Lord Ridak knew that border disputes in those frontier lands were continual, but they seldom involved a mediator from the Lords Council. Normally they were resolved by force with little recourse to the loser. “So, the Sorgan and Litari are fighting over their border,” commented Lord Ridak. “It is unusual for them to request a mediator, but it is not something that requires my immediate attention. At least let me finish these infernal reports and we can discuss the ramifications of your information.”
“They are not squabbling between themselves,” insisted Lord Marshal Grefon. “They are squabbling over Fardale. Both Clans have filed grievances with the Lords Council over Fardale transgressing their borders.”
“What?” shouted Lord Ridak. “What is that fool of yours doing? I have plans to expand Fardale next year and I do not want a decree from the Lords Council to set the boundaries in stone. This is all your fault, Grefon. I would have been better off leaving Fardale without a Lord than sending in some child who starts a war with his neighbors as soon as he gets there.”
“That is the part I don’t understand,” admitted Lord Marshal Grefon. “Marak is not the aggressive type. He is an excellent warrior and a natural born leader, but he has always given the enemy too much leeway. I cannot believe that he is pushing his boundaries into either of the other Clans.”
“What are you suggesting?” quizzed Lord Ridak. “Why else would the Sorgans and Litari file grievances with the Lords Council?”
“I don’t know,” conceded Grefon. “Neither of them is a member of the Lords Council, so the request for a mediator indicates that the grievance is severe and could lead to regional conflict.”
“Perhaps,” suggested Lord Ridak, “they are afraid that Marak will call on us for help. Neither of them could hope to stand up to the Situ Clan.”
“Even if they worked together,” declared Lord Marshal Grefon, “they would not stand a chance against us and they know it. I am concerned that the bandits who have been blocking our communications might not be bandits at all.”
“Wait just one minute,” interrupted Lord Ridak. “What do the bandits have to do with what we are talking about? Stay on one problem at a time, Grefon.”
“I see it as the same problem,” Grefon sighed exasperatingly. “If Watula Valley intentionally cut off our communications with Fardale and then filed a grievance about a border dispute with Fardale, what would that suggest to you?”
“That greedy son of a Sorgan!” exclaimed Lord Ridak. “Lord Quavry has goaded Marak into violating his border and now he is going to get official sanction for a new border advantageous to himself. Well, I will not sit by and allow this to happen. Ready the Army, Lord Marshal. We should have wiped out the Sorgans a long time ago.”
“I don’t think that is the answer,” insisted Lord Marshal Grefon. “I know the Marshal of the Sorgan Clan, Marshal Yenga. He is a brilliant strategist and he would not be fool enough to be in the middle of a war when the emissary arrived. Whatever casualties Fardale has incurred, the battle is long over. What is important, though, is that we have a say in the negotiations with the emissary from the Lords Council. We can not allow Marak to bargain away our land.”